360 DEGREES Weblog

We are seeing more and more stores and services dedicated solely to the fine things in life for men. Salons, shops and spas are realizing that men have been treated like second-class citizens when it comes to luxurious, beautiful retail environments.

There are millions of sports bars, car dealerships, gyms and hardware stores, but that is definitely not all that men need and want. At New York Fashion Week, British luxury men’s brand Alfred Dunhill showcased its Winter 2010 collection in a vacant Meatpacking District warehouse transformed into a pop-up shop.

With aluminum panels and projection technology, London-based design workshop Campaign created an environment that brought a little bit of Dunhill’s London flagship store to New York.

Thanks Coolhunter

Much the way Spot Runner and Spotzer aim to make local television advertising easy and affordable, so PlaceLocal strives to deliver a similar result on the web.

The PlaceLocal platform, from Connecticut-based advertising technology company PaperG, allows online publishers to automate local ad creation, sales and management. Aspiring advertisers need only type in their business name, and PlaceLocal will automatically search the web for relevant information—including logos, photos, reviews, awards and other information—and then use it to create a customised online advert. Advertisers aren’t required to have their own website in order to create an advert—in fact, if they don’t have one, PlaceLocal will create one for them. Once generated, the ad is fully editable by the user. The ads can then be booked to appear on partner websites in the same geographic location.

That’s what this RBC/ChangeWave’s surveys says. Back in April 2007, fewer people were interested in buying the original iPhone compared to those wanting to buy the iPad on February 2010. Does this mean the iPad would be a bigger success?

Yachting Developments in New Zealand have launched the latest superyacht from naval architect Ed Dubois. Christened Bliss, this composite sailing superyacht features interiors done by Design Unlimited. The interiors are stylish and futuristic and totally a class apart. The color scheme of the luxury yacht is white, silver and blue with accents of chocolate in the guest accommodation. Unlike many yachts that feature wooden finishes, the finishes used for Bliss’s wall panels and furniture include Spinneybeck and Edelman leathers and Alma shagreen. The customized glass pieces from Fusion Glass blend beautifully with the lacquered bulkhead finishes to give this yacht and elegant and sophisticated look. Comfort is the main criterion of this luxury yacht. Besides amazing views, the main saloon features many large white leather sofas for seating and relaxing. Texture has been offered by new Majilite finishes, scatter cushions and soft rugs.

What might be the feeling, when someone gets $1 million for what was originally bought for 10 cents? Well, we’ll never come to know about that, but ComicConnect must be having hard time convincing the person that his junk from the basement has fetched a fortune. Marking the most important event in comic book history ever, the world’s most coveted and an extremely rare Action Comics” #1, a 1938 comic book that featured the first appearance of Superman is sold for record $1million. The figure is more than three times higher than the prior record-holder, also set by ComicConnect.com. This particular issue was rated at 8.0 out of 10 according to the CGC grading company and had been held in a private collection for the last 15 years. For those who would like to have a glimpse of the rare comic book should get down to ComicConnect’s New York City showroom where it will be on a brief display.

Citroen is forging further ahead with its premium DS initiative at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show with the debut of the limited edition DS3 Racing.

Based on the Mini-rivaling DS3 premium hatchback, the DS3 Racing packs a 1.6-liter turbocharged engine producing 200 horsepower. Tuned by Citroen’s world championship rally team, the DS3 Racing sits 15 millimeters lower and 30 millimeters wider than the stock version. Special graphics, wheels, bodywork and carbon-fiber trim also help differentiate this special model, which will only be produced in limited quantities and, sadly, not available in North America.

Kim Kardashian has produced a mini-documentary titled The Spindustry about the promotion for Sugar Factory’s luxury lollipops with Kardashian friend Jonathan Cheban of Command PR.

Kim Kardashian has her own line of lollipops with the company. The pops each have crystal-covered sticks and interchangeable color-coordinated heads. Former Spice Girl Mel B also has a line of the pops. The Pussycat Dolls and Britney Spears had lines of the lollipops to support their most recent tours. The Couture Pops cost $25 each and additional heads are $12 for three.

When the $1.5M Russian SUV failed to adorn its interiors with whale penis leather, it was time to create an unbelievable armored car to keep up with the continued (mis)adventures of the world’s most expensive SUV. DARTZ has signed a contract with Riviera Premium Service and now this uber luxury, super strong and extra fast Russian Tank can meet you at a nice airport and deliver anywhere you want. So, if you find the idea of the world’s most expensive SUV, minus the whale-penis leather interiors, and if by any chance you’re visiting any cities of the French Riviera, you can rent a DARTZ at Cote d’Azur. As it is with the unique cars, armored DARTZ is of course, in limited edition. However, there’re a plenty of color options to choose from, including your choice of color if booking order is placed a week before.

Companies are catching on to the fact that bloggers can provide an effective way to create buzz about their brands. We’ve seen several efforts that explicitly recognise that fact, such as TasteCasting for restaurants and YokmoK’s free travel giveaways. Bringing the notion into the world of new consumer products is Swagapalooza, an invitation-only event that gives influential bloggers free samples of new products.

Created by Bay Area startup Launch Hear, Swagapalooza aims to give entrepreneurs a way to get their producs in front of the most-followed bloggers and tweeters from across the United States. The first event was held in New York in September last year. At it, brands including Surprise Industries, Idea Paint and Switch2Health had the chance to make presentations to the select audience of 100 bloggers, 20 Twitterers and 5 Redditors. In exchange for their participation, the audience members were entitled to free samples of any of the products being presented.

HBO’s show HUNG has now made its New Zealand debut on TVNZ’s Channel One.

Auckland-based ad agency Colenso BBDO was retained to promote the show and to generate some buzz. They have definitely created a buzz with their risqué billboard, recently erected on Victoria Street in central Auckland. Whether you like the billboard or not, and whether it draws you to watch the show or not, you must admit that the old, tried-and-true subjects – well-endowed female and male bodies – never seem to fail to draw attention.